Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5914 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Gringolandia Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez About the Artist Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez is second-year student in an interdisciplinary MFA program at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Currently, her work focuses on the impact on Latinx identity within American culture as well as the discord between the two. The artist is interested in migration patterns that occur in Latinx communities, issues of separation, and the family dynamics that develop with relocating. Gonzales is originally from a rural town on the island of Puerto Rico, but she has resided in the United States for the last ten years. Her work explores concepts of family, distance, nostalgia, and displacement. Gonzales focuses on Latinx identity—both personal and universal—by producing work that elaborates on the phenomenal experiences of any person who is bridging two cultures, both physically and philosophically. The artist has always been interested in collaborations of any type with her family. Her work, often taking place at a distance, has always revolved around family and creating an emotional bridge between the artist and her home; this has contributed to a diverse perspective in creating art. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5914 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 “Gringolandia” (2017–2018) is an ongoing collaborative project with my brother Joshua Roca Gonzalez, an active duty marine stationed in Camp Pendleton, CA. Our goal is to document heritage through the act of military enlistment. With photography, we explore some ramifications on culture. Our generations of men perpetuate Puerto Rican machismo and are proud to adopt American citizenship, a position strengthened by their participation in the American military at the cost of their own cultural history. Our work is a visual representation of the physical and psychological transitions in the development of Latinx soldiers. We are interested in exposing how this process contributes to a cultural view and practice of machismo. This work also considers inter- subjective relationships, which refers to a form of thinking by one or more conscious minds, while also exploring sibling dynamics, gender roles, and family intimacy. Gringolandia Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ 9 3 J e z a b e t h R o c a G on z a l e z Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5194 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 Figure 1 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2017-2018, Photograph. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ 9 4 G r i n g o l a n d i a Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5914 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 Figure 2 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2018, Photograph. Figure 3 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2017-2018, Photograph. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ 9 5 J e z a b e t h R o c a G on z a l e z Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5194 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 Figure 4 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2017-2018, Photograph. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ 9 6 G r i n g o l a n d i a Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5914 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 Figure 5 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2017-2018, Photograph. Figure 6 Jezabeth Roca Gonzalez, Gringolandia, 2017-2018, Photograph. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ 9 7 J e z a b e t h R o c a G on z a l e z Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu Vol 7, No 1 (2018) | ISSN 2153-5194 (online) | DOI 10.5195/contemp/2018.250 New articles in this journal are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 United States License. This journal is operated by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is co-sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. http://contemporaneity.pitt.edu/ http://www.library.pitt.edu/dscribe/ http://www.pitt.edu/ http://www.library.pitt.edu/dscribe/ http://www.upress.pitt.edu/upressIndex.aspx http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Gringolandia Gringolandia